A Toast to the Forgotten Future
by Alice's Melancholia
Summary: Things never work as planned. Naruto is now Hokage. Sasuke has killed Itachi. Neither have the happiness that they yearned for. Narusasu


**A Toast To The Forgotten Future**

The Eighth Hokage sat at his desk staring blankly ahead, his face grim with thought. The papers piled high on his desk never seemed to end but it didn't seem to matter. He seemed to have a melancholy expression ever since the verdict was announced. Guilty. After everything he had done. The sentence was final. Guilty. Even Kakashi (Both Naruto's and Prisoner 666's former teacher) had voted for the execution of his pupil. Naruto felt that he could never forgive his sensei. He of all people should know how Naruto felt about the man with the death sentence. Yet he still did it. His frown deepened. Such dark thoughts were unbecoming to Naruto who had become famous for his broad grin. He returned to his paper work, his thoughts still far, far away. He was engulfed by work and eventually his mind was at ease again. So at ease that he was startled when the ward of the prison entered the quiet office. The man bowed respectfully before informing his leader of the reasons behind his trip.  
"Hokage-sama."  
"What is it, Kenshirou-kohai?"  
"Prisoner 666 has requested an audience with you before his execution."  
"I'll accept it."  
"But, Hokage-sama. The jukeisha is an S-ranked criminal and very dangerous."  
"None the less."  
"So it is true? That you and he were once -"  
"Kenshirou-san, do not believe such nonsense. I will see him sometime late this evening. You're dismissed."  
Kenshirou bowed again before leaving still with an apprehensive look on his face. He sighed. Naruto turned and gazed wistfully at the Team Seven Portrait created on their first day that the squad was placed together. Sakura and Kakashi smiled as if there wasn't a care in the world. He, growling angrily at his rival. And then, there was Sasuke. "Why?" he whispered to the image as if it would magically come to life. He sat back in his armchair and let out a heavy breath. He knew he couldn't work anymore, so he just sat there, staring blankly into space.

* * *

Naruto left his office just as the sun was setting. He walked slowly and heavily, as if his legs were concrete blocks. He was rarely ever alone lately, what with the security precautions and such, and he liked the feeling of being all by himself and to his thoughts. He thought moodily of the past and with each memory, regretted the things that he could have changed. From an outsider's point of view, one would not have recognized his sad man as the once happy child in the Academy, boasting that he would one day be the Hokage. His dream had been accomplished but it did not bring him the joy that he had anticipated. He talked to himself, mindless chit chat. God, maybe he was going insane! He kicked pebbles as he made his journey to the encampment. He hated to admit it. He was lonely. Nobody reached him anymore. Sakura and Kakashi were there but they couldn't contact him. Their words hit his outer shell, never penetrating his inner core. There was only one person that could rouse his feelings (be it anger or happiness) in any situation. Naruto felt sick to his stomach at the prospect of seeing _him_ again. What would he say? What would he do? Would Naruto even be able to even recognize him? Naruto, himself, had changed drastically over the long separation. It had been over eleven years since he had last seen his "friend". His features for the most part had remained the same. Same blond hair. Same sun-kissed skin. He had grown taller, standing at a staggering 6ft. His bright azure eyes were the same but over the years they had lost the cheerful luster of his youth. The three scars still protruded on each side of his face. His trade mark. They had healed as he grew older and now were only faint marks upon his cheeks. His smile. That classic grin that could bring out the sun. The only problem was that he smiled less. All those years, filled with the terrible sorrows of life, had taken the gaiety right out of him. He had changed so much! The only question was that was it for the better? He had everything he ever wanted! He was the Hokage after all! He had fulfilled the very dream he had been nurturing ever since he was _born_. He was dating the stunningly beautiful Hinata Hyuuga. He was going to propose soon, the two would get married, start a nice family. The first child would be a boy, Naruto could feel it in his bones. Nisei is a good name. Nisei Uzumaki had a nice ring to it. Naruto chuckled. At least the future seemed more promising than the dreary past. The chuckled turns into a full out laugh, the first in years. But all smiles and laughter were cast aside when the large sign, a Japanese fan, appeared. Though only a symbol, the meaning rang lout and clear in the blond man's mind. This is the House of the Uchiha; all those who enter beware, everything is lost. Naruto's blood went cold.  
According to law, any person under the charge of treason was to be detained at Akuma(****) Fortress on Akai(*****) Mountain, well away from the Leaf Village, where they could harm themselves or others. But in the case of Prisoner 666, Naruto had broken the law. Why had he done it? Did he do it out of sympathy for the man? At the time, that's what he thought. His excuse had been that he was placing the prisoner where all his problems had started, but now that he actually thought about it; this must seem like hell to 666. This place must bring up horrible memories for him. The bodies of all his family members butchered before his eyes and (probably the thing that really tore out his heart) the betrayal of his beloved older brother. It was none other than Itachi Uchiha, brother of the unfortunate man on death row, that had committed the dastardly crime of murdering his own family. That is except for one small boy. And on that day, revenge had crept into the child's heart and as that boy grew into a man, the hatred only deepened. It grew so out out of hand that it had consumed him. Corrupting his very soul. Look where he was now - Locked in a prison made of nothing but bad memories. Not being able to walk on his own without armed guards accompanying him. Being watched as he slept. him while he slept. Everyone treating him differently, like he had some infectious disease. 

The jukeisha's life strangely reminded Naruto of his own. Although they led two completely different lives, the outcome was always the same. People had thought of him as the sun while referring to Prisoner as the moon. Polar Opposites. That, however, was a lie. The sun and the moon had more in common than what most people thought. They both shone upon the same earth, bringing forth light. The same could be said of him and 666. Outwardly they were different. Naruto could fair better in his looks while his former teammate was celestially handsome (the object of affection to many girls). Naruto's openness and his ability to express his thoughts, won him many friends. Prisoner 666, on the other hand, was reserved and calculating, to which many people assumed that he was a distant and cold man. The flaw with the Eighth Hokage was that he easily controlled by this emotions. The flaw with Naruto's counterpart was that he had no emotional support. One would not be able to find a single similarity between them. But the experiences that they shared together created a bond between them that no one else would be able to comprehend. He could relate to Prisoner 666 in a way no one else could. No one else would be able to understand the loneliness that came from the loss of one's family. Naruto had never known his family. His Mother died shortly after his birth. His Father followed her to the grave merely minutes after her. The pain. The anger. Naruto had felt all of that, he knew the feeling of emptiness better than anyone. He had always wondered what life would be like if his parents had lived. As a small boy, he had always seen loving families where the children were always smiling, not a care in the world. What was it like to feel that way. To know that people loved you. To know that someone cared. It was no use fantasizing at alternate realities but Naruto still thought fondly of them. They were a means of escaping this wretched world.  
Naruto entered the compound sure that when he left things would never be the same. The third house on the left. Naruto strolled there with great haste, faster than a walk but not yet a jog. He was a man with a purpose but Naruto wanted to get this meeting over with as quickly as possible. At least before his nerves broke down. He slammed the screen door open. And there, wearing a light navy-blue hakama(2) kneeling(3) at his desk, writing a letter with his lacquer black ink brush, was Prisoner 666. "Sasuke," Naruto gasped after taking in the image of the greatly aged last member of the Uchiha clan. The figure turned slowly to face the intruder and spoke crisply and clearly, "Good Evening, Naruto... or should I say 'Hokage-sama' " ending with his usual smirk. This was Prisoner 666. This was Sasuke Uchiha.  
As Naruto gazed into Sasuke's sorrow filled face, what he noticed shocked him. Sasuke's beautiful onyx eyes (eyes that could burn into his very soul) had grown dull with age, as if the fire of hatred had been put out. He had lost a lot of weight and looked like a walking skeleton. Even the smirk Sasuke flashed him had lost much of its fiery passion. It was like looking into a mirror. "I see your tongue is still sharp," Naruto retorted. "Even sharp blades grow dull," Sasuke answered not in the least bit concerned.  
"Look, Sasuke, I don't have time for this."  
"Nor do I".  
"What do you want?"  
"Just a drink. That's all I'm asking. Just one drink".  
"A drink? You've got to be kidding. Don't waste my time".  
"I won't. If you just take a seat".  
Sasuke's reply was sincere and from his tone Naruto could infer that Sasuke wasn't going to put put up much of a fight and, to be honest, Naruto wasn't going to be able to fight back. Naruto wearily took a seat by the ex-Konoha(4) ninja. Sasuke waited patiently for the Hokage to take his seat next to him; neither of them were in much of a rush. The two men sat there silently together, not knowing what to say. The silence seemed endless. The ebony haired man ended the awkwardness by pouring some warm sake(5) into a small cup. Sasuke handed the cup to the Hokage, but Naruto refused the drink. "It's not poisoned." he informed him honestly. "I'm watched daily, every waking moment of every day. I can't make a single move without one of your ANBU(6) spotting me. Hmph. You and I are not so different. Funny, that we're _both_ surrounded at all times. Ha." Naruto was still cold and unresponsive. In order to prove his point and ease his own anxieties over this entire meeting, Sasuke gulped down the whole glass in a single swig. He cringed as the alcohol seared his throat as it went into his system. He hated the taste. He hated the burning sensation. Yet he didn't stop. For old time's sake, he poured himself another, then another and then another. Naruto finally found the courage to speak his mind but his mettle only lasted for a single sentence: Was this the ideal future that you had imagined it would be? Sasuke was taken aback at this sudden and abrupt question. He took his time answering, looking for the right words. Sasuke was not a garrulous person and his reply was succinct. No point in banal conversations. "I hadn't ever thought about it," Sasuke began slowly still looking for the correct thing to say. "There was just revenge. Nothing before it, nothing after. If things had worked out better and I wasn't doomed to this fate, I suppose I would have rebuilt my clan. Marry. I would be the most uxorious husband, of that I am sure. Children would be a great joy to me. Heirs. The Uchiha clan lives again!" He paused, thinking about his imaginary family. The forgotten future was painful. It was too late. Things were left unfinished, washed away by time. "But if I could go back in time, I still wouldn't change anything." Sasuke sighed. "And what about you? Naruto Uzumaki. Didn't you always say that you would one day become Hokage. Well, Hokage-sama? You have everything you ever wanted. Is this the future that you had envisioned?"  
"Honestly, it's not. I thought that Hokage would bring me the respect of anyone and everyone. Indeed it has but not, in the way that I imagine it would be. I worked so hard to become Hokage. It was like a dream come true when I was told that the council and the Emperor had chosen me. of all people, to become the leader of this great village. Too bad I had to wake up. The decisions that the Hokage had to make were difficult causing me to bemoan my actions mere seconds after I had made them. When I was younger, I used to see the world in black and white but, someone changed my perspective. You did. I knew you were evil. All the facts said that you were evil. You killed hundreds of people. You were even planning to bring the destruction of Konohagakure. You didn't even show any sign of guilt when we apprehended you. But somehow, I could never see any fault in you. I had always thought that I could change you. I always thought that you could always be that Sasuke I had met down by the pond. But that's not what is meant to be. I wish I could change the past. Stop you from leaving........"  
"It's odd how things never go as planned. I had planned that I would one day defeat my brother and receive recognition from my Father. That idea came to nothing. Itachi always envisioned that I would be a Hero. Now look at me, a traitor to my village. Funny isn't it. Even though you chose the path of righteousness and I the path of darkness. Still we meet at the same crossroad, and there is only one path left. You and I are so alike."  
Naruto nodded. He took the cup out of Sasuke's hand and chugged it down. Sasuke poured him another. The two sat together like two old drinking buddies. It was as if all the things that happened between them didn't matter. Sasuke was just Sasuke Uchiha, Naruto Uzumaki's best friend. Naruto was Naruto Uzumaki, closest companion of Sasuke Uchiha "A toast," Naruto demanded. He raised his glass, Sasuke did the same. "A toast to the Forgotten Future." The men clanked their glasses together. "Kanpai!" Sasuke said. They both drank the sweet sake and smiled. The sake seemed to wash away their pain, both present and future.

* * *

Late in the evening when the moon shone high, laughter could be heard from within the Uchiha manor. The dim light of the lone candle on the main floor of the Main Uchiha house glowed like a single star on a cloudy dark night. Life was gradually returning back to the Uchiha manor. "We were like 'Kakashi-sensei, show us what's under your mask!' " Naruto said imitating his own prepubescent raspy voice, Sasuke's deep voice and Sakura high pitched voice at the same time. "Well sure kids! What's under my mask is....". Sasuke beat his hand on the table attempting to make a drum roll for the dramatics. Naruto, pretending there was a mask over his face, pulled down his mask. "It's another mask!". The two of them erupted into uncontrollable laughter. Naruto laughed so hard that it became hard to breathe after he was done. Sasuke had used both of his hands to cover his mouth, trying to stop himself. That memory was the last time Naruto and Sasuke had had a harmonious day together. 

The thought of the pair fighting at the Valley of the Ends frightened Naruto. "Where did it all go wrong?" he asked more to himself than to Sasuke. He grabbed his cup and drank deeply. "Sasuke, what do you think will happen tomorrow?" Sasuke raised his eyebrow. Naruto tried to explain a little further but he trailed off near the end of his statement. Sasuke froze. He had been hoping to avoid this subject. The pressing matter of his execution the next day seemed have temporalily to suffocated him. In truth, Sasuke didn't have to invite Naruto to drink with him. In fact, it might have been easier on his conscious if he didn't. But Sasuke still had so many things that would be left unfinished. The sad thoughts weighed him down like a anchor. "Nothing," he snapped back. "Nothing happens after you die. There's just darkness". Naruto looked in disbelief at him. "Don't you believe in Heaven???" Naruto questioned. Sasuke gave a small humph before answering his question. "I gave up on the Kami a long time ago," he spoke morosely. He had stopped praying that things wouldn't end this way. He had stopped praying that the Uchiha Clan would ever be built again. In general, he stopped praying. There wasn't a God. If there was one, then why would he let such terrible things befall him. Why would he take away his beloved Mother and Father? Why would he make Sasuke kill his _own _brother? 

The cheerful mood was gone, replaced by silence. Death's rotten miasma hung in the air, separating him and Naruto. He hugged his knees tighter, protecting himself from the dark. He was trembling and, without knowing it, he was crying. Unbelievable, Uchiha Sasuke was crying. It had seemed impossible to Naruto. Sasuke was always one to hide his feelings, lest they be used against him. Seeing Sasuke in such a state welled up feelings from deep inside Naruto's heart. Feelings that hadn't been felt ever since he and Sasuke had been close friends. He forcefully pulled Sasuke out of his tight ball and into his arms. The comfort of being like this. The security. The one thing that had eluded Sasuke nearly all of his life. "Naruto..." he murmured as he relaxed into the embrace. "Sasuke, I can't live, if living is without you. I need you. I've always needed you. Every since I first saw you at the Academy playground, then as a rival for the girls. Next, in Team 7, as a rival for skills. Then, during your brief stint to Otogakure(10), as a friend. And now, as a lover," Naruto confessed tightening his grip on Sasuke. "I can't give anymore. I just tried so hard to protect you. If only I -". Naruto was cut short by Sasuke's lips. It was a brief kiss. But it meant all the world to Naruto. Sasuke broke the kiss and looked deeply into Naruto's light blue eyes. "There is nothing in this life that I have ever regretted. And if I could go back and change anything, there is nothing that I would change. You can't change the past, Naruto, so accept it. What I do now, I do to repay all my mistakes in life," Sasuke told him honestly without a hint of remorse in his voice. "This really is the end". Naruto waited a while. He didn't know what to say. What Sasuke had told him was the truth and no matter how much Naruto denied it (and he did) there was no getting out of it. He could plead on his hands and knees for a millennium and yet still the verdict wouldn't be revoked. "I know, Sasuke," he finally replied. He sent out a white flag signaling his surrender to fate. But he wouldn't let go of Sasuke. Not just yet. "Let's stay like this... just for a little longer".

* * *

The sun rose too quickly. March 15. The day that Fate felt so inclined to take away Naruto's very heart. It felt as if his heart was made of lead. He sat on a large tatami mat in the sitting room of the Konohagakure temple dressed in the official Hokage robes, the ministers and elders sat in a V shape behind him. The room was tense with feelings of both sadness and triumph clashing against each other, between the men awaiting the arrival of Prisoner 666. Naruto spotted Kakashi two seats behind him. Their eyes met and even though Naruto didn't say a word, his sad eyes told Kakashi that all was forgiven. Kakashi gave a small nod indicating that he understood Naruto's message. Naruto's lips parted into a frail smile before turning back to the sacred hall.

The Bell of Genbu rang announcing the black haired man's arrival. The last of the Uchiha clan made his final appearance in a daring black kimono breaking against the tradition of wearing white. The man was graceful as ever and looked as if he danced into the hall for a ball instead of his execution. He sat formally on the seat presented for him, his face emotionless, with a hint of melancholy. The head priestess, Sakura Haruno (a team mate of both 666 and the Hokage), nodded to him and he in turned bowed to her until his head touched the ground. She kissed his head and he rose to look her in the eye. "Do you accept what fate has decreed?" Sakura asked just as the ritual instructed her to. "I do accept this fate most humbly and will receive my punishment," he answered automatically. He bowed again. She took the sacred glass of Amaterasu's tears and placed within it the poison powder and sake. "May Amaterasu forgive you," she prayed. She held out the glass to the unfortunate man. He smiled as he accepted the deadly drink from the Head Priestess of Amaterasu. He held the glass with both his hands and looked at his reflection on the water's service. He _looked _content_. _His peaceful visage didn't show it but he was scared. Scared of what would happen next. Sure, he accepted the fact the Shinigami would soon be upon him, it didn't mean that he wasn't scared of what was to come. Of what was beyond death. He tried to calm himself, stating the facts that he had been telling himself for most of his miserable life but now they were of little help. He was shaking. He caught Naruto's face on the water's edge and a wave of relief swept over him. One last message. Just One and everything would be clear. "A Toast. A Toast to the Forgotten Future," he cheered. The thought of him living a happy and comfortable life with Naruto would die with him, along with many other idealistic dreams. He drank the poison slowly and with meaning. He saw his life flashing before his eyes. His Mother, Father, Itachi, Sakura, Kakashi and most importantly Naruto. When the glass was empty, he closed his eyes and just sat there praying, not moving a muscle, waiting for the poison to take his life. It didn't take long before the side affects became apparent. He couldn't concentrate on his prayer. His mind was spinning. His breathing became ragged. His body grew numb. He fell limp into Sakura's arms. This embrace was eerily soothing. This reminded him of the blissful time when he was but a babe, sleeping in his Mother's arms. The way she stroked his hair. The way she cradled him in her arms. She sang him a lullaby to help him as his soul was drawing ever closer to the Almighty Goddesses bosom. He couldn't move anymore. He could barely keep his eyes open. He blinked once or twice, each time it got harder to open them. He just wanted to sleep. "No regrets......" he whispered as his eyes slowly closed for the final time. He fell asleep, never to wake up. He died with a smile on his lips. One could even say, he died happy.

* * *

Naruto sat a home late that night, drinking sake and thinking. Thinking dark thoughts. The sake didn't help clear his mind in fact it caused him to sink deeper into his depression, his mind kept replaying the scene again and again. The feeling of watching someone you love die right in front of you and you can't even do anything about it. The feeling of being paralyzed. The way his heart felt like a lead as Sasuke breathed his last. The realization of the horrible fact when Sakura cried out "Sasuke no**** Uchiha has joined Amaterasu in the skies". Sakura tried to console him, saying that she understood the pain that Naruto now felt. She didn't know Sasuke the way the he did. Nobody would ever understand, the bond between them. He reminisced despairingly of the last moment he spent with his one true friend. The steel chains that held Naruto to the memory of his dead companion, brought his mind into the depths of insanity. 

Naruto began hallucinating about a world where Sasuke was still alive. A place where they could stay together forever. Naruto wanted so desperately to be there. He saw the gleeful face of himself standing with Sasuke. A happy couple. The more he thought about it, the more he longed to join Sasuke in the afterlife. He contemplated suicide. The prospecto of seeing Sasuke again made Naruto heart leap. Would he find Sasuke waiting for him at the other end? He could find no other options to stop this pain in his heart. That gaping wound in his blackened heart. That is, until he found the letter that Sasuke had written to him seconds just before Naruto had paid him that visit. He opened it slowly unsure about what he would see. The scroll contained a small message that spoke to Naruto with the force of a tsunami.

Pity not the dead, but pity those who mourn for the dead. Live. 

Naruto cried, tears falling uncontrollably from his eyes. His tears refused to stop. He kissed the letter (his one keepsake of his dead friend) and pressed it close to his heart. There was indeed another option. He could to live. Get on with his life. While Sasuke was dead, he was not. He still had a life. A life that should not be wasted. He could still change the world. Do everything just as he had planned. Hinata and his future family was his future. No use for dabbing into a future that would never be. The chains that had bound him to Sasuke were, in actuallity, feeble ropes, but it was he who had been unwilling to break free of them. This really was the end. It was time to let go. But before he could let his first love go, one final speech. "A Toast, Sasuke," he declared. "A Toast to the Forgotten Future".


End file.
